


cheer competition (derogatory)

by Freezeurbrain



Category: We Are The Tigers - Allen
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Sensory Overload, autistic annleigh, autistic cairo, autistic female character(s) - Freeform, cairo gets overstimulated
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-13
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-21 14:13:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 620
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30022989
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Freezeurbrain/pseuds/Freezeurbrain
Summary: Cairo gets overstimulated at a cheer competition
Relationships: Annleigh/Cairo (We Are The Tigers)
Kudos: 19





	cheer competition (derogatory)

cheer competition (derogatory)

Cairo may love cheerleading, but she _hates_ cheer competitions.

For one, they’re loud. _So_ loud. There’s the music that plays at absolute god-shattering volume whenever the teams take the stage. And then there’s the music that plays during the routine- always a shitty remix of several pop songs punctuated by someone yelling out the team name, and which usually contain an almost-rap section near the end. Not to mention the hundreds and hundreds of conversations that are going on all around them, blending together in a stew of chaotic noise that makes Cairo want to scream.

Second of all, there are so many goddamn smells. Even now, Cairo can smell hairspray, nail polish, perfume, deodorant, the disinfectant on the practice mats, grease, and the smell of fried foods coming from the concession stand. It’s enough to make a girl throw up. 

Also, the uniform is itchy. 

Yeah, the ugly truth was that cheer competitions had _not_ been designed with autistic kids in mind. If they had, maybe Cairo wouldn’t be torn between wanting to scream and wanting to cry right now. 

“Hey, Cai.” Cairo felt a tap on her shoulder, and she turned around to see Annleigh standing there with a concerned look on her face. 

“Mm?” Cairo hugs the team’s clipboard to her chest as if it’s the only thing keeping her from screaming at the next person who makes a sound louder than a whisper- because it pretty much is. 

“Are you good?”

“I’m fine.” Cairo says, a bit too quickly and too harshly. 

Annleigh furrows her brow. “You seem stressed.”

“I’m not stressed.” Cairo says, like a liar. Annleigh doesn’t look fooled.

“Do you want to go somewhere quiet?” Annleigh asks softly.

“But the team...” Cairo’s voice trails off.

“They’ll be fine for a few minutes.” Annleigh looks down at her watch. “We have an hour until we compete. Can I hold your hand?” 

Cairo nods, allowing Annleigh to take her hand and gently guide her towards the back door of the arena. Annleigh pushes the door open, and she and Cairo step out into the quiet autumn air. 

The silence is comforting. Cairo takes a deep breath, hugging the clipboard to her chest even tighter.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Annleigh asks.

Cairo sighs. As much as she loves being away from the absolute chaos inside the competition, she hates letting other people see her be vulnerable. She’s always hated it, ever since she was a little kid. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize.” Annleigh squeezes her girlfriend’s hand gently. “I get it. I have a hard time with comps too.” 

“It’s just so...” Cairo struggles to find the right words to describe what she’s feeling. “... _loud_.”

Annleigh nods. “There’s so much going on, and you can’t pay attention to all of it, so it feels overwhelming.”

“Yeah.” Cairo looks down at her shoes.

They’re both silent for a few minutes before Annleigh speaks. “If you’d like, I have some earplugs. They don’t cancel out all the noise, but they help.”

“Really?” Cairo looks up.

“Mmhm.” Annleigh nods, reaching into the pocket of her sweatshirt. “I think I have some in here... yeah, here they are.” She holds out a pair of bright orange foam earplugs, which Cairo takes.

“They look like carrots.” Cairo blurts out.

“Wait, they kind of do.” Annleigh giggles. “I totally didn’t see that.”

Cairo puts the earplugs in her ears, smiling softly. 

“Better?” Annleigh asks.

Cairo nods. “Better.”

“Good.” Annleigh reaches out and takes her girlfriend’s hand again, giving it another gentle squeeze. “You wanna go back in now?”

“Yeah.” Cairo nods again.

Annleigh pushes the door open, and the two girls walk inside to rejoin their friends.


End file.
